Donald Trump did not walk out of his meeting with Vladimir Putin in two minutes, which he’d threatened to do earlier this week if he determined Russia’s leader wasn’t serious about pursuing a lasting peace in Ukraine.
But after giving the Russian president a red carpet welcome and several friendly photo-ops, Trump was remarkably circumspect in a 12-minute post-meeting statement to reporters, essentially conceding that he hadn’t gotten Russia to move much at all.
“We didn’t get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there,” Trump said, declaring the talks as “extremely productive” and that “many points were agreed to.” But he acknowledged that there was no progress on “one big one,” seemingly an allusion to the ceasefire in Ukraine.
After suggesting in the 48 hours leading up to the Alaska summit that his goal was a second, trilateral meeting that would include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump and Putin walked away without any concrete plans to meet again.
When Trump parted ways telling Putin he’d “probably see you again very soon,” Putin replied gamely: “Next time in Moscow.” Trump called it an “interesting” proposal and that he could “see it possibly happening.”
Trump, as he promised he would, told reporters that he would soon call Zelenskyy and European counterparts to fill them in. “Of course, call up President Zelenskyy and tell them about today’s meeting,” Trump said. “It’s ultimately up to them.”
Arrangements for a call with NATO allies were taking place shortly after Trump left the stage, according to two NATO officials, with hopes of scheduling one this evening.
Putin, who flattered Trump in his own remarks, expressed a willingness to resolve the war in a way that addresses Ukraine’s security concerns as well as Russia’s. But his remarks, referencing the “fundamental threats to our security” posed by Ukraine and his demand that a settlement must “eliminate all the primary causes of the conflict” made clear he was not ready to concede much of anything.
“I would like to hope that the agreement that we’ve reached together will help bring us closer to that goal and will pave the path towards peace in Ukraine,” Putin said.
Vague as it was, the joint appearance at Joint Base Elemendorf-Richardson — both leaders stood together in front of a backdrop with the words ‘Pursuing Peace’ — made clear that Trump wasn’t about to impose on Putin the “very severe consequences” he’d threatened earlier in the week in the event there was no progress toward ending the war.
The Russian leader, who has frustrated a succession of American presidents, appeared to have succeeded in buying himself additional time to ward off the additional economic sanctions Trump has at times threatened as his peacemaking efforts have stalled. Not only that, he left Alaska after receiving a remarkably warm welcome.
But Kyiv also avoided a worst-case scenario that some Ukraine backers had feared: Trump and Putin declaring that they’d reached a deal to end the conflict and amping up the pressure on Zelenskyy to sign off.
Paul McLeary contributed to this report.
